Ryanair boss says, "seat belts don't matter"

Michael O'Leary wants standing areas on planes

Wearing seat belts is pointless and won't save you in a plane crash. That's what Michael O’Leary, the chief executive of Ryanair, would have you believe as he tries to launch 'standing room only' cabins.

Never one to shy away from the headlines, he thinks passengers should be allowed to stand at the back of the plane which he considers is just a 'bloody bus with wings.'

In an interview with the Daily Telegraph, O'Leary said: "If there ever was a crash on an aircraft, God forbid, a seat belt won't save you.

"You don't need a seat belt on the London Underground. You don't need a seat belt on trains which are travelling at 120mph and if they crash you're all dead..."

The comments came about as O'Leary and Ryanair are currently looking to create 'standing room only' cabins for students and budget travellers, selling £1 tickets to destinations in Europe, which will undoubtedly make a lot of backpackers happy.

He has suggested removing the back ten rows of seats in aircrafts, allowing groups of less discerning travellers to commute to their destination on their feet by holding onto handles.

"If you say to passengers it's £25 for the seat and £1 for the standing cabin, I guarantee we will sell the standing cabin first," he said.

Outspoken O'Leary said that flights should no longer be considered a luxurious experience and 'most people just want to get from A to B.'

"You don't want to pay £500 for a flight.

"You want to spend that money on a nice hotel, apartment or restaurant... You don't want to piss it all away at the airport or on the airline.

"The problem with aviation is that for 50 years it's been populated by people who think it's this wondrous sexual experience; that it's like James Bond and wonderful and we'll all be flying first class when really it's just a bloody bus with wings."

This isn't the first time that O'Leary's comments have made a splash in the headlines.

He has already suggested charging passengers to use Ryanair toilets, suggested environmentalists should be shot and proclaimed an "astonishing" number of his customers want to tax and torture fat people.

When questioned over the fairness of charging travellers to print a boarding pass, he said: "We think [they] should pay 60 euros for being so stupid."

Interesting. What do you think gappers? Would you pay for a standing-only ticket if it was only £1?

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